chronicles of charisma

𝐢.𝐯 - 𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐜

chapter five - alec winters

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❝They're going to hate us at the beginning,

but we'll get them in the end.❞

—You've Got Mail (1998)

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"Give it a chance. You never know what'll happen. Please." Flora looks over at me when I offer the deal.  There's a desperate feeling in me. This could be my one chance to make my lifelong dream come true. My one chance to make it big. I look into Flora's eyes and see her truly ponder over the decision.

I know, I know. It's not really a "deal." All I asked was that we work together. If she says no...well, that's that. But if she says yes...we could really work on this. Flora's voice disrupts my obsessive thinking. I haven't acted like this, so desperate, so vulnerable, in a long time. "Give me, like five minutes to think about it, Alec." She tells me. 

Hope fills my body.

Flora walks away to sell the painting that she made during our performance - a colorful canvas filled primarily with dark greens and bright oranges, with pops of pink, red, and yellows that shape a murky face with what seem like yellow pupils.

I love it.

I'm talking to some of the crowd, who tell me: our duo complement each other perfectly - have we been working for a long time? - tell me when your next gig is! All of this grows my hope for her accepting my deal further. Flora soon sells the painting, seeming much happier than before. I stare into her eyes and ask about her thoughts on the deal. Everything is riding on Flora Williams' decision. 

Pouring everything in this request, I plead again: "Flora. Please, just one more gig. At least." Almost immediately, I hear her reply, "Fine. Let's go get famous." 

YES. LET'S GO. She sticks out her hand for me to shake - I automatically do. My face is a giant grin, wide with excitement, hope, dreams.

I take a second to calm down and breathe. Flora's smiling back now. 

Her smile is so pretty.

"Pleasure working with you, Ms. Williams," I joke in my excitedness.

Flora smiles, and after a moment, speaks. "Should we meet up sometime then? To talk about it?" She asks warily, "After all, we don't have anything scheduled, or conditions planned, or..." Her voice trails off, perhaps thinking about all the things we don't have planned.

I stretch my arms, looking at the direction of the door. "Well first...let's get some sleep. You said you were coming by the Guitar Center earlier, right? I'll text you when my break is, and we can get coffee or something." I gesture for her to follow and I call a cab for the both of us, smiling like a madman.

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the next day

I woke up early, which is astonishing since I hardly slept at all. I was simply too excited about Flora and I's deal to fall asleep.

I debated texting Flora during the night - not about the deal, just to talk - but decided against it since I didn't want to get on her bad side by being annoying before we even properly met. I savor our conversations. When I talked with her last night, she saw the realest parts of my personality. I haven't acted like this around people before. Especially not a stranger; I wonder what made me behave like that. Was it my dream being served on a platter? Was it because of Flora?